The Rottnest Island Authority in conjunction with Rottnest Express have introduced a luggage procedure for your onward and return journey that is designed to improve and simplify the accuracy and efficiency of luggage delivery. Rottnest Express is responsible for the water transport component of the delivery of your goods, with the Rottnest Island Authority being responsible for the delivery and collection for return of your goods on the Island. Please note delivery times vary and may take up to 3 hours for your goods to be delivered to your accommodation.
Luggage & Freight Guidelines
Carry-on Luggage
- Single piece carry-on items should be no larger than 600mm x 400mm x 300mm. There are no luggage storage facilities in the passenger cabins, so anything taken onboard must be able to be accommodated on your lap and not interfere with other passengers.
- If you are travelling with an infant, infant food and other necessary items as well as one baby pram per infant may be carried onboard at no extra cost. Prams are to be folded prior to boarding and stowed securely in the pickup cage at the boarding gate. They are to be collected from the jetty immediately after disembarkation. Children should then be seated with a parent or guardian.
- To assist with passenger comfort and safety, any passengers bringing a pram will be given priority boarding after folding and stowing pram.
Checked Luggage
Checked baggage is loaded in to a luggage crate and then stowed in the vessel hold or deck for the crossing to and from Rottnest Island. All contents of your checked baggage need to be packed securely and must be packaged appropriately to prevent damage occurring from other items of luggage whilst stowed in the luggage crate and during the delivery & collection on Rottnest Island. We will always take the utmost care with your belongings, but as we cannot inspect the condition or the method of packing by the ticket holder we do not accept any liability for damage to any items that are damaged during transit due to not being packaged in an appropriate suitcase or bag.
Please be aware that to comply with health and safety regulations size and weight restrictions apply to your luggage:
• Weight limit of 22 kilograms per checked luggage
• Each cardboard box – maximum 10 kilograms
• Each luggage item must not exceed 800mm x 500mm x 400mm in dimension
To guarantee delivery of your luggage please ensure all luggage complies with the following:
- Items which do not comply with the above cannot be transported or delivered.
- No ‘piggy-backing’ of luggage is permitted e.g. attaching a sleeping bag to a suitcase. Small items must therefore be checked individually or taken as carry-on luggage.
- Valuables and medication must be carried in your carry-on baggage; under no circumstances are they to be packed in luggage to be delivered or put in the vessels hold.
- For safety reasons fishing rods cannot be taken into passenger cabin areas. They will be placed in the vessels hold by the crew and must be collected by yourself from our crew upon disembarkation from the vessel.
- If travelling with infants, please ensure you have adequate quantities of essential supplies as delays to deliveries on the island due to circumstances beyond our control do occasionally occur.
Luggage Labels
- When making a booking 8 (eight) days or more in advance of your travel date you will be mailed a set of personalised luggage labels with onward and return information for a $2 postage charge. Provided that your luggage labels are included at the time of booking, you are entitled to 1 luggage label per person travelling free of charge and any thereafter can be purchased for $3 per label. Additional luggage labels can be purchased when booking, or at your departure terminal. If luggage is overweight, you do have the option to purchase a lightweight plastic storage bag from any one of our terminals.
- If your booking is 7 (seven) days or less from your travel date, provided that your luggage labels are included at the time of booking, you are entitled to 1 luggage label per person travelling free of charge however these labels will not be mailed and you will be able to collect luggage labels at the departure point. Any thereafter can be purchased for $3 per label.
- If luggage labels are not included at the time of completing your booking, any luggage labels that are required on the day of travel will be charged at $3 per label.
- Once booked, if your travel arrangements change then new luggage labels will need to be re-issued at either your departure point or extra labels purchased online.
- All luggage label related fees are displayed when checking out online.
Carriage of bicycles and bicycle trailers
Due to the limitations of loading bicycles on board the vessel, only bicycles that are within the specifications listed can be loaded and are loaded subject to availability.
Height – No higher than 1.3 metres
Length – No longer than 1.8 metres
Width – Total width of the bike must be no wider than 45cm
Weight – No heavier than 22kg
- Electric bicycles, that meet the specifications, can be loaded provided the battery pack is removed from the bicycle.
- Bicycles that exceed any of these specifications cannot be loaded on any Rottnest Express vessel.
- Bicycle trailers are required to be empty before being loaded on board the vessel.
Carriage of beach trolleys
Foldable beach trolleys are able to be taken to Rottnest Island at no additional charge however they need to be folded and stowed for the ferry voyage.
- Beach trolleys are required to be empty before being loaded on board the vessel.
- Beach trolleys cannot go inside the passenger cabin of the vessel and will need to be folded to then be loaded on to the vessel in a designated crate
- Beach trolleys and any additional bags placed in the designated crate are to be collected from the jetty immediately after disembarkation
Additional freight and associated charges
| Item |
Fee per item |
| Own Bike or Trailer |
$20.00 |
| Surfboard |
$11.00 |
| Bike & Surfboard Combo |
$26.00 |
| Wave Ski |
$22.00 |
| Stand Up Paddleboard |
$22.00 |
| Dive Tank |
$11.00 |
| Golf Clubs |
$11.00 |
| Cray Pot |
$11.00 |
| Electric Scooter |
$20.00 |
Please note that mobility scooters cannot be taken inside the vessel and will be loaded on to the vessel in a designated crate free of charge. The crew will be on hand to assist with embarkation and disembarkation at the departure location on the day of travel.
The items listed above, as well as the following cannot be delivered and must be collected from the vessel upon disembarkation:
- Electric Scooters
- Fishing Rods
- Bikes (rentals or own)
- Guitars/musical instruments
- Boogie boards (not in a cover)
- Surfboards
- Golf Clubs
Electric Scooters
The international maritime dangerous goods code allows for EScooters with fixed batteries to travel. The terminals cannot rub together and cause friction if they are fixed to the scooter. There are very few scooters that have removable batteries, but if they can be removed, they must. If the batteries can be removed, then during the crossing, they could cause friction and ignite.
The fixed batteries packaging must be strong and prevent the products from short-circuit. A visual inspection will be done by person taking the escooter from the guest and loading into the pick up crate.
